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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: root · bark · plane · degree · cue · ball · last · cabinet

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. last — final
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bark — to shout
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. cue — for pool
  10. degree — from a university
  11. cue — a hint
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — of a word
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. ball — a great time
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. last — finally
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. ball — a dance
  23. degree — an amount
  24. root — the cause

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com